The Only Raw, Vegan Granola Recipe You’ll Ever Need

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The Only Raw, Vegan Granola Recipe You’ll Ever Need

Raw granola is one of the first dishes that many raw foodists try to make at home. It makes sense: granola is a crowd pleaser, and the raw versions don’t tend to taste all that different from the cooked ones, so it’s a great transition food. The downside is that dehydrators are usually called for; the upside is that raw granola offers more texture and more satiety than a smoothie (of course this depends on the smoothie), which means it’s a comforting and convenient breakfast option for those who are stumped for raw breakfast ideas (that doesn’t include CR readers, who get tons of breakfast ideas from yours truly!)

The fact that I did not attempt a raw granola until last week is pretty weird, given how popular the stuff is. And now that I have made it, I imagine it’ll become a habit, since I absolutely loved the results. As the title of this post suggests, I won’t be doing much to alter my recipe: it turned out wonderfully, at least to my taste. This granola is rich in protein, healthy fat, and just the right amount of sweetness, and it has a wonderful cinnamon flavor that enhances the whole dish. It’s also very easy to make, especially since most of the proportions work in thirds.

As usual, you can turn this into a regular oven recipe without any fuss. Just bake it at 350 until it has started to get toasty and crispy—I’d say about 30-40 minutes. Enjoy.

2) Whisk together the maple syrup, water, coconut oil, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Pour over dry ingredients and mix them well with your hands. If you’d like to make a sweeter granola, you can add another tbsp maple syrup, or a few drops of stevia; the amount listed is intended only to add gentle sweetness and to bind the granola together.

3) Dehydrate at 115 degrees for about 10-12 hours, or until granola is sticky but adhering firmly. Refrigerate till ready to use; this will help maintain crunch and texture!

It’s heavenly with blueberries, bananas, and almond milk—not to be missed!

Can’t wait for your reactions.

Apartment update! Not much has transpired since yesterday, so I’ll refrain from showing you progress photos that don’t earn the name. That said, my clothing and bedding has been (mostly) put away. Aside from my horror at how much clothing I own, this is a big accomplishment. So glad you guys like the new place as much as I do.

Congrats on getting most of your clothes put away. That is HUGE progress.

And again, can’t believe you’re breaking out real posts, i.e. full on recipe posts in the midst of a move. You rock. Or rawk. <—I usually refrain from that word, but the raw granola recipe is rawkin'

I love that you used apples in it,too. Mmmmm, good!

And all those seeds. Yay for that and you know what I also love: no nuts! I do love nuts like the rest of the world, but in raw cooking and baking they tend to be a bit over-used so I love seeing sweet-ish or breakfast-ey type recipes, sans nuts. And full of blueberries and apples. Yummy!

Looks tasty! It doesn’t look well-combined…do you find that buckwheaties can combine well with seeds and fruits? Or maybe it is time for me to store this away for a day my tummy settles down because lately it has been unhappy

I’ve been trying to think of a well-combined granola…so far I’ve come up with buckwheaties, coconut shreds, and banana. Are there any other mixins you can think of that would work with that?

Oh! And your place looks amazing — I bet putting away the clothes was a lot of progress! Don’t seel yourself short!

I’m just waiting for my dehydrator any day now and granola for my husband is close to top of the list of ‘to-makes.’ He’s just recently been finding that oats give him a tummyache, so this might be perfect. He also claims to hate buckwheat, but I’ve seen him eat store cereal (um, kashi?!–obviously buckwheat) without realizing the buckwheat, so maybe if I don’t tell him he’ll like it.
Thanks so much for sharing!
love
Ela

I’ve made raw granola once before, not sure what to expect. It came out the dehydrator, my friends tasted it, and said, “is that all you made?”. Now that I know I love it and it keeps well, I triple or quadruple the recipe to make sure the dehydrator is packed full. If the dehydrator is going for that long, I make sure every tray is used. How nice that the dehydrator isn’t humming away in your bedroom any more!

I love when you have grandiose titles like this because I know you don’t take these things lightly and you can totally back it up. I have everything to make this in my pantry…well, except the dehydrator, so thanks for the oven instructions as well!

The recipe looks great! The first time I made raw granola I sprouted buckwheat groats. I much prefer just soaking and going from there — especially with this mini-heat wave as I’m terrified of sprouting in this hot house (say no to mold!) Can’t wait to try it.

Congratulations on your new beginning, Gena! I’ve heard DC is a great place to live. I was wondering, any recommendations on dehydrators? I don’t have much counter space and I don’t want to spend a huge amount of money… I just feel bad letting all of this juice pulp go, even if it is composted! (and I wouldn’t mind having a new kitchen gadget to play with 😉

I can’t wait to get my braces off so I can try this recipe! I made buckwheaties a few weeks ago, and LOVED them, but they killed my teeth! I’ve missed granola since going gluten free 5 years ago. Thanks for an amazing-looking recipe.

Love me some raw granola! But I don’t have a dehydrator
Since you said we could make this using an oven, how long & at what temp do you suggest baking the buckwheat for in order to get it to the desired dehydrated consistency? Also, would we still soak the buckwheat?

That looks absolutely amazing! I really want a dehydrator but they’re kinda pricey. I think I’ll be saving up for one though, I’m not completely raw by all means but I think with a dehydrator I’d definitely eat more “raw” foods…..like kale chips! yum!

It’s been a long time (2011) since you made your statement. Things might have changed by now. If not… keep the faith! It took me a matter of about five years before I finally got both my Vitamix and my dehydrator. Save up what you can from those tax refunds.

Gina, I am hooked! Thank you! I have tried several raw granola recipes, and this one is by far the easiest and best tasting. I made a single batch, ate about half of it off the dehydrator, and immediately began soaking enough buckwheat for a double. I have so enjoyed your blog! I live near DC and look forward to gleaning from your discoveries and insights into scrumptious vegan/raw eats in the city. Wishing you a smooth transition and settling! Welcome to the area!

I also just found your site and could not be happier! I’ve been experimenting with gluten-free granola recipes and have been dying to make one using buckwheat. Top it off that it’s raw and I’m in! Can’t wait to try this yummy recipe this weekend.

This granola is the best!! I’ve made it quite a few times.. keeping it in mason jars in the fridge, then enjoying it with almond mylk, banana, blueberries, or on its own. My only suggestion to others…Make a double batch..you won’t regret it!

This looks absolutely delicious. I have a dehydrator question: How do you pick one? I have seen several, but just wanting to jump into raw foods I want to make sure I invest in the proper one. I would want to make granola, crackers, fruit leathers, etc.
Any advice you have is welcomed.

Your passage; “As usual, you can turn this into a regular oven recipe without any fuss. Just bake it at 350 until it has started to get toasty and crispy—I’d say about 30-40 minutes. Enjoy.”

…I would add “HOWEVER, if you choose to bake, cook this dish at any temp exceeding 111 degrees, it will no longer be considered RAW, as you will have destroyed the beneficial enzymes in the food, rending it now ‘cooked’, ‘dead’, ‘an empty calorie’, just so you know.”

Your yummy receipt is dehydrating as we speak.. it is so good I keep eating it under the guise of “stirring” it. I substitued ginger for nutmeg because I LOVE ginger. And it is amazing. Got a zing to it..

I made some nut based granola with some nice citrus peel in it which was good too but I like that this is buckwheat based. Lots of protein and not quite so heavy.
Merci!!!

I made the buckwheat sprouts. Do I need to dehydrate the buckwheat sprouts before adding the additional ingredients and then dehydrate the entire thing? Or do I mix the sprouts and then dehydrate everything one time?

Hi! I just came across this recipe and love the sounds of it. Just wondering about the dehydrating the buckwheat. Could you tell me how long to soak it for and how long does it go into the dehydrator? Can’t wait to give it a try.
Thank you in advance.
Uli

I made this and its delish! The only thing is, I think I went overboard on the coconut oil because it’s overpowering the cinnamon taste. Next time I think I will omit the coconut oil. But still delicious, especially with organic bananas and coconut milk. Yum,!

This is the perfect granola! I’ve made it many times now. I actually like to quadruple the recipe and freeze the extra. I have tried adding more maple syrup, but I think the measurements are perfect and and don’t need any adjustments. Thank you!!!

Yay! I made raw granola! Thanks for the recipe, Gena. You are helping me use my under-utilised food dehydrator. I made a few adjustments to make more FODMAP-friendly (i.e. eliminating the dried fruit and reducing the maple syrup accordingly), but it still turned out great! Next is the cocoa raw-nola (or the kale raw-nola, if I am feeling very bold!).

Hi!
This granola looks amazing!
I just have one question: the aples should be placed in the dehidrator still raw and let them “dry” with the other ingredients, or you put them already dried in the dehidrator?
Thanks!

Hi Gena!
Thanks for your reply!
Just one more thing: don’t you think that the buckwheat groats (and the apple) could be dehidrated along with the other ingredients instead of dehidrating them first and then make the granola?
Could agave work as well as the maple syrup?
Thanks!